Epiphany Carol Service at St. Peter Mancroft Church

On Sunday 13th January 2013 I attended the Epiphany Carol Service at St. Peter Mancroft Church in Norwich City Centre. This was an evening service that started at 6.30 pm to celebrate the Baptism of Christ. O Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; Bow down before him, his glory proclaim; With gold of obedience and incense of lowliness, kneel and adore him: The Lord is his name. In the Church of England if Epiphany is observed on 6 January or before, the Baptism of Christ is observed on the following Sunday.

The Choir at St. Peter Mancroft Church sang a number of wonderful hymns including When Christ was born of Mary free - John Gardner, Bethlehem Down - Peter Warlock, A New Year Carol - Benjamin Britten, Tomorrow shall be my dancing day - John Gardner, Brightest and best - Malcolm Archer and The Journey - Simon Lole. During the service gifts of gold frankincense and myrrh were laid upon the alter.

The story of the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist in the River Jordan features in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. Sing, ye heights of heav'n, His praises; Angels and Archangels, sing! Wheresoe'er ye be, ye faithful, let your joyous anthems ring, ev'ry tongue his name confessing, countless voices answering, evermore and evermore.

Mark Padmore at Norwich Assembly House

On Friday 27th April 2012 I attended the Britten Sinfonia at Lunch concert at Norwich Assembly House which featured tenor Mark Padmore. Also performing were Nicholas Daniel - oboe, Emer McDonough - flute, Jacqueline Shave - violin, Miranda Dale - violin, Clare Finnimore - viola and Caroline Dearnley - cello.

The programme consisted of Ten Blake Songs - Vaughan Williams, The End - Jonathan Dove - The End and The Curlew - Warlock. This performance was the World Premiere of Jonathan Dove's The End which was commissioned with the Tenner for a Tenor campaign.

This concert highlighted the host of British composers who found inspiration in the poetry and folksongs of the British Isles in the first half of the twentieth century. Also Jonathan Dove's The End was performed in the middle of the concert. This was a concert of the highest quality which began with Vaughan Williams' Ten Blake Songs which were written as settings of Blake's poetry for the film The Vision of William Blake.

Jonathan Dove's commission is music composed for Mark Strand's poem The End. The music suggests the gentle rocking motion of a ship slipping into darkness and the sound of birds suspended in flight. The concert finished with Peter Warlock's The Curlew which is a song cycle of poems by W.B. Yeats. This was a brilliant lunchtime at Norwich Assembly House with Britten Sinfonia once again giving us a performance to remember.